1969 Nova - Family (Bow)Ties

Going Back in Time to Enjoy the Family of Today

Eddie and Michelle Farino live with their two sons in Dix Hills, New York, and have found a great way to stay connected to the boys. Eddie had a Nova when he was just a teen, and always wanted to build another. So how about getting the kids involved? Good idea, and besides spending time with the boys, Eddie gets a fine car out of the deal. Of course, the boys learn how to take a car apart, clean parts, keep track of where everything went, learn the difference between an 1/8-inch open-end wrench and a 9/16 box end, along with a few added vocabulary words used only when talking to a car in the garage. It's all part of growing up and can only be learned with real "hands-on" experience. If the results are any clue as to how much the boys learned, this ultra-fine Nova tells us they learned a lot.

This '69 was a pretty good starting point for a project. A friend took Eddie to a storage container where this two-door was, and knowing Novas, Eddie made a deal and took it home. Original work was done in the family garage with some help on the body and paint from Al Rose. The 502 engine was built by Eddie Dridge, and of course, the heirs to the Farino family name were right in the middle of it all.

We first saw the car at the Maple Grove Super Chevy Show where it took honors in the 1968-and-later Nova Class, as well as an Editor's Choice Top Ten Show Car award. Listening to it run, we realized that while a 502 GM crate motor sounds impressive, the tweaks on Eddie's 502 were awesome. We also like that he hooked it up to an M22 "Rock Crusher" four-speed trans. When we popped the trunk for photos, Eddie said he spent an inordinate amount of time smoothing the trunk floor. We've seen exterior body panels that weren't as smooth as this trunk-no trunk mat for this car!

This great Nova represents a big investment, both in money and time, but the best part is that it's family time.

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